Radiothérapie

Intra-patient controlled trial of Mepilex Lite dressings

This article reports on the results of a randomised controlled trial that was undertaken to assess the effect of Mepilex Lite dressings on the full range of radiotherapy-induced skin reactions of breast cancer patients post-mastectomy.

Methods:

A total of 80 women were recruited from four hospitals in New Zealand with 74 women contributing a full data set for analysis. The first skin area on the chest wall to develop erythema was randomly divided into two similar halves; one was treated with Mepilex Lite dressings, the other half with aqueous cream. Skin reactions were assessed using the Radiation-Induced Skin Reaction Assessment Scale.

Results:

Compared with aqueous cream, Mepilex Lite dressings did not significantly reduce the incidence of moist desquamation, however they did reduce the overall severity of skin reactions by 41% (p<0.001), the average moist desquamation score by 49% (p=0.043) and the sum of the moist desquamation time for all patches by 28% from 25 to 18 weeks. Most patients preferred the dressings, found them easy to use and very comfortable to wear.